New School Accountability Scores to be Released Friday

FRANKFORT, Ky. - Kentucky public school testing scores will be released Friday by the state Department of Education, marking the first data available under the state’s new Unbridled Learning accountability model. The new system is the result of legislation passed in 2009.

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The full interview with Commissioner Holliday.

Scores are based on five components: student performance on year-end tests, school achievement gaps, growth in reading and math, college and career readiness, and graduation rates.

Because Unbridled Learning is a new model, Kentucky Education Commissioner Terry Holliday says this year’s scores will look very different from previous reports.

“These new assessments raise the bar. We’re telling parents not panic. Talk to your teachers talk to your school principals and see what you can do at home to help kids reach these more rigorous standards.”

Schools and school districts will be scored on a scale from 1-100. Scores in the top 30 percent will be considered Distinguished and Proficient, while other schools will be in the “Needs Improvement” category.

“I think there’s a big difference between the ‘Needs Improvement’ category and No Child Left Behind which labeled these schools as failing. These schools are not failing, they just have particular components that they need to work on,” says Holliday.

Schools will develop plans on how to improve their target areas and receive follow-up reviews from the state.